Improvement in curculio-catchers



identit Strut anni than.

FRANK J. GLAXTON AND CHARLES D. STEVENS, OF ST. LOUIS. MISSOURI.

Letters Patent No. 113.855. dated April 1.8. 1871.

IMPROVEMENT iN CURCULlO-CATCH ERS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part oi the same.

We, FRANK J. CLAXTQN and CHARLES D. Srn- VENS, both of St. Louis, in the county of St. Louis and State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Gurculio-Catcher, of' which the following is a specification.

Nature and Object of the Invention..

Our .invention relates to an apparatus supported on a single wheel, which is to be run beneath the infested tree, an extended sheet being stretched upon bows to catchthe curculios as they drop from the tree,

owing to a sharp jerk heilig given to the latter and Our invention consists in the arrangement of the supporting and stretching-frames, and in the bumping apparatus, which is a spring ram, that is drawn back by hand and released to inflict the blow by an alitomatic'tripping device.

Description o f the Drawing,

at the line z z, g. l.

General Description.

Aand B are the longitudinal beams of' the main rame, ending in handles O D.

E F are the longitudinal bars of the sheet-frame, ninged to the beams A B by hinges G at the upper edges.

Attached Vto the ends of the bars E F are semicircular bcwsH I, which are supported near their midlength by attachment to the arms J K, extending at right angles to the bars E F.

Brace-rods or wires extend from eyes e f (near the ends ofA the bars E F) to near the midlength of the bows, and serve to rigidity the wings. and support the fabric L, which latter is secured vto the bars and the bows, and forms a circular sheet to catch the falling cnrculios.

M is a cross-tie ending in two depending braces, m m', whichV serve to support the wings of the sheetframe (when in a horizontal position) by giving bearing to braces j k at the inner ends of the arms J K.

The front edge of the cross-tie M carries a cushion, N, to prevent injury to the tree.

Hinged to the lower edges of the front portion of the' beamsA B, and upon the inner sides thereof, are aps O O', Whose front and rear ends are inclined or beveledin the directionof their breadth so as to be raised by passage of a tree between them.

The upper inner edges of the aps are beveled, as shown, so as to fit together and forma sharp edge at top, so that the curculios will roll aside and bedeposited upon the sheet, whose edges are fastened to the upper sides of the ilaps.

The flaps are raised by the entrance of the tree between them, the-beveled ends enabling the tree to force the flaps upward and apart as the machine is moved eitherforward or backward.

The sheet acts as a brace to prevent leitherxiiap falling too low, as the lower edges of the fiaps are hinged to the beams and their upper edges-connected tothe sheet, as shown in iig. 4. i P is the ram, which slides freely in boxes Q Q', the box Q being open at bottom to allow the longitudinal motion of a depending pin, p, of the rain, and to both sides of this box are attached strips R R', of India rubber, acting as springs upon the pin p.

At the fore end ot'rthe ram is a rubber cushiomp',

to prevent injury to, the tree.

VVithiu a longitudinal vertical slot of the ram is pivoted (on a pivot, 3,) a latch, S, whose catch s is engaged by a pin, t, connecting the two sides of a lever-frame, T. g

This frame is pivoted to the beams at the lower vend by a pin, t', and to Aits upper ends are attached operator.

rlhe levei frame is drawn forward by a spring, t, when the wires U are relaxed.

W is a removable oil-vessel or bag suspended benea-th a hole in the sheet, and into which the curculios are swept from time to time.

l 2 are semicircular plates, serving as side legs yor supports to the outsides of the wings, to prevent their' contact with the ground and upon the plate 1 is an eye, 3, and upon the plate 2 a hook, 4, by which the outer edges of the wings are engaged or held together when raised up and folded together vertically. ,y 4

The operation of our machine is as follows:

rIhe machine being Wheeled forward and the faps raised by the pressure of the tree, they fall together' when the tree enters the aperture at the rear of*the' iiaps. rlhe wires U are then drawn backward, and the pin t engaging the catch s draws back the ram until the pin t descends so as to diseugage it from the catch, when the rubber spring throws the ram forcibly forward, which strikes the tree. The spring t is then allowed to draw the lever T forward, the pin t raising the latch as it passes beneath the catch s'. `A s many blows asdesired may be given, and the machineis moved away by backing it enough to release it from the tree. In case the ram is put in operation when tical position for trnsportation, or vlowered into horlthere is no tree to receive the blow, the pin p strikes izontal position for use, all substantially as specified. the spring B', which prevents injury'.

2. rBhe ram P p R R S s s T t t t U V, substantially as described.

FRANK J. GLAXTON.

, CHARLES D. STEVENS. SAM. KNIGHT, HENRY G. IsAAcs.

We claim- 1. The curculio-catoher herein described, constructed with two wings, consisting ofthe bars E F, bows H Witnesses: 1, arms J K, and sheet L, and hinged to the beams A B'so as to adapt said wings te be turned up into ver- 

